Deceptive agency

A look at professional liars in British intelligence is a fun read, observes MICHAEL GOODMAN

- MICHAEL S GOODMAN

‘The word ‘propaganda’ has gone out of fashion in recent years. Today we talk of ‘strategic communications’, ‘information warfare’ or ‘covert influence’. Fundamentally, though, these are all the same thing: attempts by one side to sway perceptions, secretly and sneakily, without intended recipients knowing that they are being played.

Fakers provides a wealth of examples of these activities. It’s a hybrid sort of book, written with the pace and dialogue of a novel but nicely researched and heavily referenced.